mount  gerizim 

The  One  True  Sanctuary 


By  JACOB,  SON  OF  AARON 

HIGH  PRIEST  OF  THE  SAMARITANS 


TRANSLATED  BY  ABDULLAH  BEN  KORI 
PROFESSOR  IN  PACIFIC  UNIVERSITY 
FOREST  GROVE,  OREGON 


EDITED  BY 

WILLIAM  E.  BARTON,  D.D. 


CONCERNING  SAMARITAN  MANUSCRIPTS. 


The  Samaritan  priests,  appreciating  the  interest  of  American  and 
European  Christians,  are  now  willing  to  sell  to  them  accurate  modern 
copies  of  the  ancient  books  of  the  Samaritan  religion.  I think  it  well, 
however,  to  warn  intending  purchasers,  that  not  all  the  copies  offered 
for  sale,  even  in  Nablus,  are  accurate.  Some  people  of  little  learning, 
relying  on  the  ignorance  of  tourists,  have  made  garbled  copies  of  our 
Torah,  and  sold  them  to  tourists  or  correspondents.  Manuscripts  pur- 
chased at  our  Synagogue,  from  myself  or  my  sons,  will  be  certified  as 
complete  and  correct.  Several  recent  purchasers  have  sent  their  man- 
uscripts to  me  for  inspection,  and  I have  been  sorry  not  to  be  able  to 
certify  to  their  correctness.  It  grieves  us  to  have  our  Law  incorrectly 
copied.  I request  my  friend,  Dr.  Barton,  to  make  this  statement  to 
intending  purchasers.  We  desire  that  such  copies  of  our  sacred  books 
as  go  forth  into  Christian  libraries  shall  be  accurate.  Any  manuscript 
purchased  in  our  Synagogue,  and  bearing  my  seal,  is  genuine  and 
complete. 

Jacob,  Son  of  Aaron,  High  Priest  of  the  Samaritans. 

Samaritan  Synagogue,  Nablus,  Palestine. 


iUnrntt  (Smztm,  the  (0tte  ®nte  Sanctuary 


BY 

JACOB,  SON  OF  AARON 

HIGH  PRIEST  OF  THE  SAMARITANS 


TRANSLATED  FROM  THE  ARABIC 
BY  PROFESSOR  ABDULLAH  BEN  KORI 
Pacific  University,  Forest  Grove,  Oregon 


EDITED  BY 

REV.  WILLIAM  E.  BARTON,  D.D. 
OAK  PARK,  ILLINOIS 


BY  THE  COURTESY  OF  THE  EDITOR 
Reprinted  from  the  Bibliotheca  Sacra  for  July,  1907 


OAK  PARK,  ILLINOIS 
THE  PURITAN  PRESS 


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MOUNT  GERIZIM  THE  ONE  TRUE  SANCTUARY. 

BY  JACOB,  SON  OF  AARON,  HIGH  PRIEST  OF  THE  SAMARITANS  AT 

SHECHEM.1 

INTRODUCTORY  NOTE. 

The  following  remarkable  paper  is  by  the  present  High  Priest  of 
the , Samaritan  religion.  It  is  the  living  utterance  of  a sect  almost 
forgotten,  and  remembered  by  the  world  only  in  connection  with  its 
relations,  first  with  the  Jews,  and  afterward  with  the  ministry  of 
Jesus.  Through  these  sources  we  know  that  the  Samaritans  have 
held  throughout  the  ages  a weary  and  profitless  controversy  con- 
cerning the  authorized  place,  of  worship.  The  pilgrim  to  Jerusalem 
looses  the  shoes  from  off  his  feet  in  reverence  for  that  ancient  holy 
place,  and  casts  a curious  glance  at  Gerizim  as  he  rests  by  Jacob’s 
well,  and  thinks  of  it  as  a shrine  established  by  the  excommuni- 
cated priest  Manasseh  and  his  father-in-law  Sanballat  in  the  time 
of  Nehemiah. 

Against  this  judgment  on  the  evidence  of  one  side  the  High  Priest 
asks  to  be  heard.  He  claims  to  be  able  to  show  for  Gerizim  an  an- 
tiquity far  antedating  Jerusalem.  For  the  first  time  in  any  modern 
tongue  (so  far  as  is  known  to  the  editor  of  this  document)  he  has 
secured  the  ear  of  Christendom,  and  he  asks  for  an  impartial 
hearing. 

It  will  certainly  surprise  many  readers  of  this  article  to  find  the 
High  Priest  so  keen  a logician.  While  this  article  shows  much 
reasoning  of  the  type  we  have  learned  to  call  rabbinical,  his  argu- 
ment as  a whole  is  logical,  and  follows  the  historical  method  to  a 
climax. 

He  claims  to  set  forth,  as  he  has  received  it  from  his  fathers,  the 
Samaritan  priests  in  unbroken  succession  from  Aaron,  the  argument 
for  the  sanctity  of  the  holy  mountain,  Gerizim,  against  what  he 
deems  the  modem  and  unsupported  claims  of  the  Jebusite  city 
called  by  the  Jews  Jerusalem.  That  city,  he  affirms,  was  not 
the  place  mentioned  in  the  sacred  Torah  as  the  one  to  which  the 

1 Translated  from  the  Arabic  by  Professor  Abdullah  Ben  Kori,  of 
Pacific  University,  Forest  Grove,  Oregon ; edited  by  Rev.  William  E. 
Barton,  D.D.,  Oak  Park,  Illinois. 


4 


Mount  Gerizim, 


children  of  Israel  were  journeying,  nor  was  it  known  to  them,  nor 
was  it  in  their  possession,  nor  is  it  named  in  the  passages  m the 
Scriptures  of  the  Jews  which  they  quote  in  support  of  it.  The  un- 
named sanctuary  there  cannot  refer  to  Jabish,  which  was  not  known 
to  the  Jews  at  that  time,  nor  until  David  captured  it,  and  his  wicked 
son  Solomon  introduced  idolatry  of  various  kinds.  He  appeals  to 
the  Scriptures  of  the  Jews,  and  affirms  that  where  the  place  of  the 
sanctuary  is  unnamed  it  cannot  refer  to  Jerusalem,  and  that  where 
it  is  named  it  plainly  names  Gerizim.  There  the  tribes  gathered  for 
the  ratifying  of  the  Law,  and  there  they  continued  to  come  for  the 
crowning  of  their  kings.  Even  the  son  of  Solomon  came  back  to 
Gerizim  to  be  crowned,  as  the  Jews  themselves  know,  and  their  Scrip- 
tures declare.  How  vain,  then,  is  it  for  them  to  assert  that  their  .city 
possesses  antiquity  and  sanctity,  when  their  own  writings,  even  with 
the  corruptions  they  have  made  in  them,  show  that  Gerizim  is  the 
place  for  worship! 

I regret  that  in  the  article  published  in  the  Bibliotheca  Sacra 
for  July,  1906,  one  or  two  errors  appeared  in  my  statements  concern- 
ing the  age  and  service  of  Jacob,  the  High  Priest.  The  information 
on  which  I relied  for  these  items  was  inaccurate  in  some  of  its 
minor  details.  In  a recent  letter  the  priest  promises  me  detailed 
biographical  information,  but  furnishes  these  facts  concerning  his 
own  birth  and  administration : — 

“ i Was  born  iu  the  year  1257  of  the  Mohammedan  Era,  which  is 
1841  a.  d.  My  father  died  the  same  year  I was  born,  and  I was 
brought  up  by  my  grandfather.  He  was  very  kind  to  me,  and  taught 
me  all  I know.  I was  married  at  eighteen,  and  when  I was  twenty 
years  of  age  my  grandfather  put  me  into  the  priesthood,  in  which  I 
have  been  ever  since.” 

This  paper  constitutes  the  second  of  the  ten  chapters  of  the  book 
written  by  the  High  Priest,  referred  to  in  the  previous  article. 

I do  not  pretend  that  the  publication  of  the  High  Priest’s  argu- 
ment will  greatly  disturb  the  conclusions  of  Christian  scholarship. 
To  us  it  matters  little  on  what  mountain  men  were  once  taught  to 
worship  God;  since  now  the  true  believer  may  worship  the  Father 
everywhere.  But  if  any  importance  whatever  may  be  attached  to 
the  historical  inquiry,  the  High  Priest  has  more  to  say  for  his  side 
of  the  controversy  than  most  modern  scholars  have  suspected. 

I acknowledge  the  ability  and  courtesy  of  Professor  Ben  Kori. 
whose  translation  has  been  a labor  of  love,  and  without  whose 
cooperation  my  own  work  would  have  been  impossible. 

William  E.  Barton. 


Mount  Gerizim. 


5 


THE  SANCTITY  OF  GERIZIM. 

In  the  name  of  the  Most  Merciful  God.  This  chapter  is 
concerning  the  belief  of  the  Samaritan  people  as  regards  the 
direction  in  which  they  turn  themselves  in  prayer,  namely, 
toward  Mount  Gerizim.  Their  authority  is  manifest  from  the 
express  commands  of  the  holy  Torah.  In  it  we  shall  prove 
that  this  identical  mountain  is  the  chosen  site,  the  house  of 

God Bait-u-Elah.  Upon  it  the  Shekinah  was  established 

during  the  life  of  our  lord  Joshua,  the  son  of  Nun  (upon  him 
be  peace  and  the  best  of  favors)  ; and  therefore  it  should  be 
the  place  of  worship.  We  shall  reply,  furthermore,  to  the 
Jews,  who* rejected  it,  and  refute  their  alleged  reasons  for  sub- 
stituting another  place  for  it,  calling  to  our  proof  Scriptures 
that  expressly  relate  to  it. 

the  divine  revelation  of  the  true  sanctuary. 

The  Samaritan  people,  in  the  first  place,  declare  that,  as  a 
matter  of  fact  and  viewed  from  a rational  standpoint,  the  best 
knowledge  is  to  know  the  Creator  (who  is  exalted  above  all)  ; 
and  the  best  action  is  to  worship  him  (who  is  exalted)  ; for 
by  both  of  these  every  being  is  ennobled.  And,  as  the  result  of 
the  diligent  inquiry  of  thinking  people,  they  have  been  led  to 
the  conviction  that  the  Maker  of  the  world  is  the  Ancient  One, 
whose  worship  shall  be,  binding,  and  whose  unity  should  be 
made  evident.  The  spiritual  angels  left  their  abode  on  high 
and  descended  earthward  upon  that  sacred  spot  wherein  ap- 
peared his  worship  (who  is  exalted),  and  the  belief  in  his 
oneness.  The  spot  became,  on  that  account,  highly  exalted, 
and  quite  distinct  from  every  other  on  the  whole  earth.  This 
distinction  and  explanation  are  satisfactory  to  thinking  minds. 

THE  SANCTUARY  FROM  MOSES  TO  JACOB. 

The  prophets,  according  to  the  traditions,  from  Adam  to 


6 


Mount  Gerizim. 


our  lord  Moses  (on  whom  be  peace),  had,  doubtless,  a direc- 
tion toward  which  they  turned  themselves  in  their  worship  of 
God  (who  is  exalted  and  honored).  Passages  may  be  found 
in  the  sacred  Book  that  was  brought  down  upon  our  lord 
Moses  (on  whom  be  peace)  which  harmonize  with  this  claim. 
In  fact,  God  (who  is  exalted)  revealed  the  region  and  place 
through  Moses,  as  will  be  explained  later  on,  with  the  help  of 
God  (may  he  be  exalted).  But  among  those  passages  it  will  be 
of  use  to  mention  the  ones  in  connection  with  our  lord  Jacob 
(on  whom  be  peace).1 

THE  PROMISE  IN  TPIE  WILDERNESS. 

Again,  we  note  what  our  lord  Moses  (on  whom  be  peace) 
mentioned  in  the  song  that  was  sung  by  himself  and  his  people, 
the  children  of  Israel,  in  connection  with  the  incident  of  the 
sea,  and  which  is  found  in  Exodus  xv.  17,  meaning  as  follows : 
“ Thou  wilt  introduce  them,  and  plant  them  upon  the  mountain 
of  thy  inheritance,  in  thy  place,”  down  to  the  passage,  in  the 
same  chapter,  whose  purport  is  as  follows : “ Which  thou 
hast  made,  O Lord,  thy  sanctuary.  Confirm  it,  O God,  by  thy 
power;  thou,  O God,  wKo  rulest  eternally  and  forever.”  This 
prophecy  of  our  lord  Moses  (on  whom  be  peace)  confirms  the 
continuation  of  the  sanctity  of  that  place ; for  it  is  connected 
with  the  ever  existence  of  God  and  of  his  kingdom.  Whether 
by  the  way  of  inclusiveness  or  as  a part  of  the  whole,  it  is 
God’s  kingdom ; therefore  this  place  is  a chosen  one. 

THERE  CAN  BE  BUT  ONE  SUCH  SANCTUARY. 

Moreover,  what  would  be  of  import  to  our  position  is  the 
command  of  God  (who  is  exalted)  to  destroy  the  places  upon 
which  the  foreigners  worshiped  their  gods,  namely,  upon 

1 The  argument  here  is  omitted  as  it  appears  later  in  place. 


Mount  Gerizim. 


7 


the  high  .mountains,  in  the  groves,  and  under  every  shady  tree. 
He  commanded  them  to  demolish  their  altars,  to  undermine 
their  inclosures,  to  burn  in  fire  their  temples,  to  break  to 
pieces  their  engraved  idols,  to  blot  out  their  names  from  those 
places,  adding,  “ Do  not  worship  otherwise ; but  only  upon 
the  place  which  the  Lord  your  God  chose  from  among  your 
tribes  that  his  name  may  abide  therein,  and  he  (who  is  exalted) 
may  dwell  upon  it.”  The  same  is  plainly  indicated  in 
Deuteronomy  xii.  26 : “ But  thy  offerings  and  thy  vows, 

which  thou  vowest  and  consecratest  to  God,  carry  and  bring 
over  to  the  place  which  God  chose.”  This  place  has  been 
already  shown,  in  another  chapter,  to  exist  in  the  land  of 
Canaan,  and  we  shall  refer  to  it  later  on. 

JERUSALEM  CANNOT  BE  THE  SANCTUARY. 

God  preferred  this  tribe  known  as  the  Samaritans  to  those 
of  the  Jews,  because  of  God’s  approval  of  the  Samaritans  over 
the  Jews  in  reference  to  the  point  to  which  direction  in  prayer 
is  made.  In  the  manuscript  of  the  Torah  which  is  in  the  hands 
of  the  Samaritans,  the  reference  concerning  the  point  of 
direction  in  prayer  is  indicated  in  the  past  tense,  namely,  “in 
the  place  which  he  chose.”  The  Jews,  however,  have  in  all 
their  manuscripts : “ in  the  place  which  he  hath  chosen.”  The 
Jews  claimed  the  verb  to  be  future,  and  that  the  command  was 
fulfilled  under  Solomon,  the  son  of  David,  after  the  passing  of 
two  hundred  and  thirty  years  of  the  possession  of  the  land  of 
Canaan  by  the  children  of  Israel.  Then  the  Jews  began  to 
build  the  city  they  call  Jerusalem,  which,  in  fact,  was  built  by 
and  captured  from  the  Jebusites  under  the  reign  of  Solomon  s 
father,  David,  as  we  have  indicated  in  the  first  chapter  of  this 
book.  But  what  would  render  this  supposition  null  and  void  is 
the  making  on  the  part  of  God  (who  is  exalted)  an  obligatory 


8 


Mount  Gerizim. 


duty  upon  his  people  of  Israel,  during  the  days  of  our  lord 
Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  to  bring  forth  a tenth  of  the 
fruit  of  the  land  and  of  its  crops,  and  to  set  apart  whatever  is 
vowed  of  sheep,  oxen,  and  their  first-born  yearly,  and  to 
bring  the  same  before  the  presence  of  God  to  the  chosen  place, 
prohibiting  their  use  for  sacrifice  in  the  villages  and  cities. 
Now  it  would  be  wrong  to  make  the  tithes  binding  every  year, 
and  to  have  them  used  in  a special  place,  while  the  place  is 
either  non-existent  or  unknown,  with  no  means  of  finding  it 
out.  This  certainly  cannot  be  accepted  by  sane  minds ; for, 
necessarily,  the  place  must  have  been  already  existent  and  its 
whereabouts  must  have  been  known  before  Jerusalem  was  in 
the  hands  of  the  Jews.  What  might  be  an  additional  proof  of  the 
wrong  supposition  of  our  opponents,  as  they  claimed,  is  what 
God  (may  he  be  exalted)  made  binding  in  reference  to  oxen 
and  sheep  that  are  set  apart;  that  is,  he  prohibited  the  free- 
dom of  using  them  and  of  having  them  kept  in  the  hands  of 
him  who  would  set  them  apart.  He,  indeed,  specified  the 
period  to  which  their  setting  apart  must  take  place,  which  is,  in 
case  of  the  oxen,  according  as  it  is  recorded,  up  to  the  time 
when  the  oxen  reach  the  age  of  usefulness,  say,  in  ploughing 
the  earth,  and,  then,  they  cannot  remain  in  the  hands  of  their 
consecrators ; for  said  God  (who  is  exalted)  : “Do  not  plough 
with  the  first-born  of  thy  ox.”  This  means  that  the  ox  ought 
to  be  brought  to  the  house  of  God  (who  is  exalted)  before  it 
reaches  its  age  of  usefulness.  The  period  limiting  the  conse- 
cration of  the  first-born  of  sheep  is  before  the  sheep  reach 
what  God  (who  is  exalted)  specified  in  the  following:  “Do 

not  shear  the  first-born  of  thy  sheep ; but  before  the  Lord  thy 
God  thou  shalt  offer  it  yearly,  in  the  place  the  Lord  thy  God 
chose  for  thee.” 


Mount  Gerizim. 


9 


These  arguments  prove  that  there  was  a place  of  worship 
known  to  the  fathers  and  to  which  they  took  their  sacrifices ; 
and  that  before  Jerusalem  was  known.  We  will  now  consider 
the  -reasons  why  this  people  claim  that  direction  in  prayer  is 
towards,  and  the  worship  of  God  (who  is  exalted)  is  upon, 
the  mountain,  which  is  the  mountain  of  worship  for  those  who 
devoted  themselves  to  God  (who  is  exalted). 

GERIZIM  WAS  THE  HOME  OF  ABRAHAM. 

First,  what  befell  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
after  God  (who  is  exalted)  commanded  him  to  depart  from 
his  land  and  native  home,  and  said  to  him,  “ Go  to  the  land 
which  I shall  reveal  unto  thee,  and  wherein  I shall  make  thee 
a great  people,  and  bless  thee.”  The  Lord  (who  is  exalted) 
tells  us  that  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  departed,  follow- 
ing his  command,  and  came  to  the  land  of  Canaan,  and 
journeyed  in  it  till  he  entered  Nablus,  that  is  to  “the  meadow 
of  Moreh,”  which  is  known  scripturally  and  traditionally  to  be 
identical  with  Nablus.  It  is  thus ^ definitely  located  in  the  book 
of  Genesis  (chap,  xii.),  the  contents  of  which  affirm  that  it  is 
the  place  in  view,  where  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be 
peace)  pitched  his  tent.  Here,  as  he  remained  for  a while  and 
settled  down,  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  appeared  to  him,  and 
conversed  with  him,  and  blessed  him,  and  promised  to  give 
him,  and  his  seed,  that  land  (see  aforementioned  chapter). 
We  can  easily  conjecture  from  the  contents  that  God  com- 
manded our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  to  leave  his 
country  only  in  order  that  he  might  bring  him  to  that  place, 
and  we  are  certain  that  this  place  was  the  one  he  had  promised 
to  direct  him  to.  A sure  indication  was  the  fact  that  the  altar 
was  built  upon  it,  and  the  altar  denotes  the  direction  in 
prayer,  as  well  as  the  place  of  prayer  and  blessing ; for  upon 
Abraham’s  arrival  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  blessed  him,  and 


10 


Mount  Gerizim. 


made  gifts  to  him,  and  he  through  the  prophetic  spirit  felt  as 
if  his  object  would  be  accomplished  in  doing  pilgrimage  to 
that  mountain  near  by,  as  it  is  recorded  in  the  same  chanter, 
where  it  says,  “And  he  departed  from  there  to  the  mountain 
east  of  Beth-el,  and  pitched  there  his  tent,  Beth-el  on  the  west 
and  Ai  on  the  east,  and  he  built  there  an  altar  to  God,  and  in- 
voked the  name  of  God.”  It  becomes  plain,  therefore,  that  the 
mountain  by  the  side  of  the  meadow  of  Moreh  is  between  the 
mountain  of  Gerizim  and  of  Ebal  (Deut.  xL  30).  These 
boundaries  and  other  indications  make  plain  to  us  the  location 
of  the  plain  of  Moreh,  and  also  the  mountain  of  Gerizim. 
Here  is  the  Bethel.  Here  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be 
peace)  established  the  altar  of  worship,  and  thereupon  he  de- 
clared the  name  of  God  (may  he  be  exalted),  in  order  to  in- 
form us  that  the  mountain  is  chosen  for  that  end.  The  fact 
is  well  known  that  Elon  Moreh  ” is  the  plain  of  Beha,  and  Ai 
is  a village  east  of  that  plain,  and  these  boundaries  are  thrice 
mentioned  in  the  Samaritan  Torah, — twice  in  the  Decalogue 
(once  in  its  first  division,  and  another  time  in  its  second 
division).  The  Jews,  however,  dropped  it  out  from  the  Dec- 
alogue. The  reason  whereof  is  that  the  dignity  and  virtue 
of  Mount  Gerizim  is  well  affirmed  therein.  There  remained, 
nevertheless,  in  the  Jewish  scriptures,  the  boundaries  as  we 
have  mentioned  them  in  Deuteronomy  xi.  The  Jews  struck 
out  the  saying  of  God  (who  is  exalted),  “confronting 
Nablus  ” ; for  the  Samaritans  says,  “ By  the  side  of  Elon 
Moreh,  which  is  by  the  side  of  Nablus.”  But  though  they 
have  struck  out  God’s  saying,  “ confronting  Nablus,”  the 
boundaries  that  are  mentioned  in  their  own  text  are  in  favor 
of  our  argument.  The  fame  of  the  mountain  of  Gerizim  and 
of  Ebal  is,  indeed,  great,  even  in  the  manuscript  of  the  Jews. 
The  boundaries  therein  recorded  define  both  sides  of  the 


Mount  Gerizim. 


11 


plain : Gerizim  on  its  right,  Ebal  on  its  left ; and  the  meadow 
of  Moreh  is  at  the  base  of  Gerizim,  reaching  as  far-  as  the 
base  of  Ebal,  and  Gilgal  is  opposite  the  two  mountains,  and 
forms  a part  of  their  boundaries.  To  this  the  intelligent  will 
readily  assent.  If  there  were  no  distinct  difference  between 
these  two  mountains,  their  boundaries  would  not  have  been 
marked  in  so  specific  a manner:  such  a distinction  and  prefer- 
ence for  the  mountain  of  Gerizim  as  against  the  mountain  of 
Ebal  will  be  noticed  in  its  own  place  in  this  chapter. 

And  what  would  assure  us  that  Nablus  and  its  mountain  are 
the  place  to  which  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  directed  our  lord 
Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace),  directing  him  “to  the  land 
which  1 shall  show  thee,”  is  the  great  distance  he  had  to  go. 
The  departure  of  bur  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
was  from  “the  Ur  of  Kashdim  [Chaldeans],  which  is  in  the 
land  of  Khorasan.”  None  can  make  little  of  the  distance  be- 
tween Khorasan  and  Nablus,  to>  which  he  went.  With  all  that, 
the  holy  Torah  did  not  mention  any  stopping-place  or  the 
visiting  of  any  place  by  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be 
peace)  while  on  his  distant  journey,  except  his  destination,  the 
place  of  Nablus,  the  plain  and  the  mountain  confronting  it : 
for  they  were  his  sought  object,  and  through  them  was  ful- 
filled what  was  promised  to  our  lord  Abraham  ( upon  whom  be 
peace)  of  blessings  from  his  Abundance  (may  he  be  exalted). 
Thus  it  is  affirmed  that  Nablus  is  a chosen  place,  and  its 
mountain  is  a chosen  place ; it  is  the  mountain  of  blessing,  as 
it  is  so  explained,  and  told  according  to  the  plain  statement  of 
our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  ; for  its  name  is  given 
as  Beth-el. 

GERIZIM  IS  THE  PLACE  OF  THE  SACRIFICE  OF  ISAAC. 

The  second  argument  for  affirming  that,  it  is  the  chosen  place 
of  worship  to  God  from  eternity  is  that  the  holy  men  went  to 


12 


Mount  Gerizim. 


it,  and  worshiped  God  upon  it,  and  made  pilgrimage  to  it,  and 
recognized  it  well.  Most  notable  is  the  account  given  as  to  the 
trial  of  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  when  God 
(may  he  be  exalted)  required  the  sacrifice  of  Isaac  (upon 
whom  be  peace),  which  is  plainly  given  in  Genesis  xxii. 
Therein  it  is  said : “ After  these  words  God  tried  Abraham 
and  spoke  to  Abraham,  and  he  answered : Behold,  here  I am. 
And  God  said,  Take  thy  son,  thy  only  son,  whom  thou  lovest, 
Isaac,  and  go  to  that  land,  the  Moreh,  and  offer  him  as  an 
offering,  upon  one  of  the  mountains  which  I will  tell  you.” 

Our  lord  Abraham  (upon  him  be  peace)  obeyed  the  order 
given  him,  and  rose  up  early,  and  took  his  son,  our  lord  Isaac 
(upon  him  be  peace),  and  took  with  him  wood  for  the  offer- 
ing, and  took  a knife  with  him,  and  also  his  servants ; and 
moved  in  the  direction  of  the  place  as  it  is  indicated  in  the 
chapter  mentioned.  He  saw  the  place  to  be  very  distant,  and 
departed  in  that  direction — to  the  land  of  Moreh,  after  he  had 
gone  a distance  of  three  days.  Now  what  is  meant  by  the 
land  of  Moreh  is  where  he  stopped.  It  is  the  land  of  the  plain 
of  Moreh  by  Nablus,  and  this  must  have  been  the  place  where 
God  (may  he  be  exalted)  conlmanded  him  to  go.  Then  our 
lord  Abraham  (upon  him  be  peace)  looked  out  to  that  mount- 
ain from  afar,  and  knew  positively  it  was  the  mountain  of 
Gerizim ; for,  on  account  of  its  fame  and  height,  one  can  see  it 
from  afar.  The  distance  proves  also  that : our  lord  Abraham 
(upon  whom  be  peace),  when  the  revelation  was  given  him, 
was  living  in  the  Bir  of  the  Sabi  (Beer-sheba),  and  that  is  the 
exact  distance  between  that  place  and  Mount  Gerizim ; for  if 
a man  would  depart  early  from  the  Bir  of  the  Sabi,  he  would 
not  arrive  at  that  mountain  except  upon  the  third  day.1  This 
is  clearly  not  at  all  true  to  the  place  claimed  by  the  Jews  as 

1 On  this  point,  see  article  “ Moriah,”  by  Dr.  Driver,  in  Hastings’s 
Dictionary  of  the  Bible. 


Mount  Gerizim. 


13 

that  of  the  sacrifice,  for  it  cannot  be  seen  even  at  a distance  of 
half  a day,  not  to  mention  three  days.  In  due  tim<e  our  lord 
Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  arrived  at  the  mountain,  of 
which  he  was  told,  and  there  he  built  the  altar,  that  is,  the 
altar  which  he  had  built  before,  meaning,  he  built  it  again. 

I It  is  not  said,  “ He  built  there  an  altar,”  as  if  it  were  the  first 

time  he  had  done  so ; but  “ the  altar  ” ; for  where  the  letters 
aleph  and  lamedh  are  prefixed  to  an  indefinite  noun,  these  let- 
ters make  it  definite,  and  connect  the  altar  thus  rebuilt  with  a 
previous  and  known  history.  There  God  (may  he  be  exalted) 
redeemed  our  lord  Isaac  (upon  whom  be  peace)  by  a ram  which 
he  sent,  and  which  our  lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
offered  in  lieu  of  his  son.  Thus  was  fulfilled  his  prayer,  name- 
ly : “ May  God  attend  to  the  sheep  for  offering,  my  son,”  which 
was  uttered  as  a reply  to  the  question  of  his  son  concerning  the 
sheep  for  the  offering.  Thus  God  answered  his  prayer,  and 
looked  upon  him  with  his  mercy,  and  redeemed  his  son  for 
him,  and  saved  him  from  the  edge  of  the  knife.  Therefore  our 
lord  Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  called  the  name  of  that 
place  “ god-is-seen.”  This  name  was  given  for  two  reasons : 
first,  because  God  (m!ay  he  be  exalted)  saw  Abraham  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  with  his  mercy,  and  answered  him ; secondly, 
because  it  is  a derivation  of  that  place  whose  name  is  the  land 
of  Moreh  wherein  the  mountain  was  situated.  The  same  ex- 
pression is  given  in  the  Torah  when  it  was  brought  down  up- 
on our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  ; it  is : “ And  Abra- 
ham called  the  name  of  that  place  YHWH-Jireh,”  that  is, 
" god-is-seen.”  The  report  of  this  expression  was  given  out 
j by  the  tongue  of  our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  when 

he  said : “ It  is  said  to-day,  In  the  mountain  YHWH  shall  be 
seen,”  for  the  fame  of  this  mlountain  was  well  spread  among 
the  children  of  Israel,  during  the  days  of  the  prophet  Moses 


14 


Mount  Gerizim. 


(upon  whom  be  peace),  to  the  effect  that  it  is  the  place  of 
prayer  and  the  kiblah  of  those  who  pray. 

Those  who  are  friendly  descendants  of  Abraham  (upon 
whom  be  peace),  besides  affirming  the  foregoing,  basing  their 
stand  upon  the  infallible  revelation,  believe  the  advantages 
accrued  in  this  mountain  exist  still  for  the  benefit  of  the  latter 
generations.  This  could  be  used  to  subvert  the  Jews  claiming 
that  the  chosen  place  was  selected  by  God  (may  he  be  ex- 
alted) only  through  David  and  Solomon,  adding  in  their  copy 
of  the  Torah  that  it  was  a place  “ to  be'  chosen.”  We  have, 
therefore,  thus  produced  convincing  passages  out  of  the 
Scriptures,  and  have  proved  that  the  kiblah  was  chosen  from 
eternity. 

gerizim:  is  the  beth-el  of  Jacob's  vision. 

The  third  argument  can  be  developed  out  of  the  life  of  our 
lord  Tacob  (upon  whom  be  peace).  Both  the  Samaritan  and 
the  Jewish  copies  agree  on  what  was  reported  in  Genesis 
xxviii.  as  to  his  departure  to  his  uncle’s,  and  as  to  what  he 
met  in  that  place  where  lie  tarried  the  night  in  dreaming  that 
dream  and  in  seeing  those  visions.  From  these  incidents  the 
high  standing  of  that  place,  being  the  gate  of  heaven,  its  dis- 
tinction from  other  mountains,  the  necessity  of  directing  one- 
self toward  it  in  prayer,  and  its  being  the  kiblah  of  the  saints 
are  strongly  confirmed.  We  have  said  something  along  this 
line  in  the  first  part  of  this  chapter. 

The  fourth  argument  is,  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be 
peace)  arrived  safely  from  his  journey,  which  was  accom- 
plished by  God’s  providence  as  is  indicated  in  Genesis  xxxi. 
13,  where  God  says,  “ I am  the  God  of  Beth-el,  where  thou 
anointedst  a pillar  and  didst  vow  a vow ; arise  and  go  to  the 
land  of  thy  nativity.”  While  on  the  mountain,  as  he  was  on  his 
way,  he  had  vowed  as  follows : “If  God  will  be  with  me,  and 


Mount  Gerizim. 


15 


will  keep  me  in  this  way  which  I go,  and  will  give  me  bread 
as  food  and  clothes  to  put  on,  and  if  I return  in  peace  to  the 
house  of  my  father ; God  shall  be  my  lord,  and  this  stone  that 
I have  set  shall  be  the  house  of  God : and  whatever  thou  shalt 
give  me,  that  I shall  surely  tithe  for  thee.”  When  the  Lord 
(may  he  be  exalted)  favored  him,  and  gave  him  blessings  and 
brought  him  back  in  peace,  and  fulfilled  his  request,  and  con- 
ferred upon  him  his  favors,  he  imposed  it  a duty  upon  him  to 
fulfill  his  vows.  He  reminded  him  of  his  pillar  and  promise, 
and  told  him  to  go  to  that  very  place  wherein  he  made  his 
vow,  there  to  fulfill  it.  Jacob,  loaded  with  abundant  favors, 
obediently  left  his  uncle,  and  came  in  the  direction  of  Nablus, 
for  it  was  the  intended  place  (see  Gen.  xxxiii.  18).  “And 
Jacob  came  safely  to  Shechem,  which  is  Nablus,  which  is  in 
the  land  of  Canaan,  when  he  came  from  Paddan-aram,  and  he 
pitched  his  tent  before  the  city.” 

Now,  the  single  return  of  Jacob  to  the  city  of  Nablus  is  the 
fulfillment  of  his  prayer,  which  . he  uttered  in  the  course  of  his 
vow,  saying,  “And  if  I return  safely  to  the  house  of  my 
father.”  Verily,  it  was  the  fulfillment. of  what  he  wished.  By 
the  house  Of  his  father  is  meant  the  altar  his  grandfather 
Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  had  built  in  the  plain  at 
Nablus,  and  it  is  the  very  one  previously  mentioned  as  “ Elon 
Moreh.”  Therefore  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
pitched  his  tent  in  that  place.  “ He  pitched  his  tent  before  that 
city.”  The  city  is  Nablus.  He,  also,  bought  that  plain,  to 
» which  reference  has  been  made,  from  the  people  of  those  days, 

and  which  is  called  “ Halkat  us-Sahra.”  The  name  of  the 
plain  was  at  first  “Elon  Moreh,1'  but  now  it  is  “Halkat  us- 
Sahra.”  What  stronger  argument  could  there  be  than  Tift 
fact  that  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace) j bdrigllHJfMi 
plain  to  the  neglect  of  others  ; that  he  erected T her efcfP Thl 


16 


Mount  Gerizim. 


and  called  the  name  of  that  altar  “ The  Mighty  God  of 
Israel  ” ? This  parcel  of  “ us-Sahra  ” belonging  to  Nablus  is  at 
the  base  of  Mount  Gerizim.  Both  the  Samaritan  and  Jewish 
people  agree  upon  its  name  and  fame.  At  its  corner  our  lord 
Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace)  is  buried.  His  tomb  is  still  to  be 
seen  in  it  until  this  very  day.  This  fact  is  strongly  affirmed  by 
the  written  traditions  of  both  of  the  mentioned  peoples,  so  we 
have  exact  and  undisputed  knowledge  so  far  as  that  place  is 
concerned. 

The  Samaritan  people  know  their  truths  through  what  has 
been  written  about  it  in  the  books  of  their  forefathers  and 
through  their  dwelling  near  by  it. 

THE  BURIAL  OF  JOSEPH  PROVES  THE  SANCTITY  OF  GERIZIM. 

With  the  Jews,  what  affirms  our  position  is  the  thirty-second 
verse  of  the  twenty-fourth  chapter  of  Joshua,  reading  as 
follows : “ And  the  bones  of  Joseph,  which  the  children  of 

Israel  brought  up  out  of  Egypt,  they  buried  in  Shechem,  which 
place  was  bought  for  one  hundred  sheep,  and  it  became  a 
possession  of  the  children  of  Joseph.”  But  the  Samaritan 
people  explain,  from  the  Scriptures  and  traditions  of  their 
forefathers,  that  the  cause  of  their  forefather  Jacob’s  buying 
this  parcel  of  land  was  its  exalted  rank,  because  our  Lord 
Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  erected  upon  it  an  altar,  and 
because  of  its  nearness  to  Mount  Gerizim.  The  burial  of  our 
lord  Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace)  is  in  that  very  place.  This 
has  been  our  contention  throughout  the  long  discussion  with 
the  aforesaid  people.  Apparently  the  burial  of  Joseph  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  was  the  result  of  a special  revelation  from 
God  (may  he  be  exalted)  to  our  lord  Joshua  (upon  whom  be 
peace),  for  it  was  among  those  sections  of  Nablus  given  to  our 
lord  Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace)  by  his  father  Jacob  (upon 


Mount  Gerizim. 


17 


whom  be  peace).  This  is  explained  in  Genesis  xlviii.  21: 
“ And  I gave  thee  Nablus  [Sam,  Heb.  reads  Shecbem]  in 
preference  to  thy  brothers,  which  I took  from  the  band  of  the 
Amorite  with  my  sword  and  bow.” 

This  passage,  taken  from  the  Hebrew  text,  harmonizes  with 
the  passage  found  in  the  Samaritan  text,  and  also  with  the 
text  used  by  the  Jews.  Accordingly  the  lord  Joshua  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  and  the  people  with  him,  who  found  favor  in 
God’s  sight,  gave  Nablus  and  its  dependencies  to  the  children 
of  Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace),  wherein  they  buried  their 
grandfather. 

We  do  not  admit  the  claim  of  the  Jews,  to  the  effect  that 
Nablus  was  one  of  the  cities  of  Refuge,  as  is  found  in  their 
book  of  Joshua.  Now,  the  cities  of  Refuge  belonged  to  the  chil- 
dren of  Levi : observe,  therefore,  this  contradiction.  Joseph 
(upon  whom  be  peace)  was  buried  in  his  own  portion,  as  it  is 
admitted  by  both  Samaritans  and  Jews  and  as  we  explained 
previously,  and  not  in  land  belonging  to  the  Levites  (upon 
whom  be  peace).  ' 

The  reason  why  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  gave 
particularly  Nablus  to  our  lord  Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
in  preference  to  his  brothers  can  be  found  in  Jacob’s  desire  to 
recompense  his  son’s  beneficent  deeds  and  favors  which  the 
latter  accorded  to  his  father  and  brothers  in  supplying  with 
abundance  their  deficiencies  and  needs  in  those  years  of 
famine,  as  the  report  is  given  in  Genesis  xlvii.  12,  where  we 
find  the  following:  “And  Joseph  nourished  his  father, 

brothers,  and  all  his  father’s  family,  with  bread,  according  to 
their  families.” 

He  used  to  feed  them,  and  give  them  bread,  to  each  in 
sufficient  quantity,  including  even  their  children.  There  was 
no  bread  in  all  the  land,  for  famine  was  felt  sorely.  There- 


18 


Mount  Gerizim. 


fore  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  gave  the  noblest  of  the 
earth’s  spots  especially  to  him.  And  God  (may  he  be  exalted) 
made  it  a duty  upon  any  of  the  children  of  Israel  who  was  to 
take  possession  of  his  own  inheritance,  wherever  it  might  be, 
to  come  to  this  spot,  in  order  to  be  sanctified  by  treading  on  it, 
and  in  order  to  receive  a blessing  from  it,  and  thence  to  carry 
such  a blessing  to  his  own  land.  And  notice  of  this  is  given 
in  the  book  of  Deut.  xxxiii.  13,  in  the  blessing  recorded  by 
our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  concerning  our  lord 
Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace):  “And  of  Joseph  he  said, 
Blessed  of  the  Lord  be  his  land  for  the  precious  things  of 
heaven.”  This  is  the  land  which  was  given  to  him  and  where- 
in he  was  buried ; it  is  the  blessed  land  from  God  (may  he  be 
exalted).  Blessed  shall  be  those  who  make  pilgrimage  to  it, 
and  those  who  dwell  upon  it : this  passage  confirms  the  fact 
that  Nablus  and  its  mountain  are  chosen  by  God  (may  he  be 
glorified).  He  sanctified  them,  and  blessed  them,  and  made 
them  a worthy  site  for  his  worship,  and  .for  the  fulfilling  of 
vows  therein. 

GERIZIM  WAS  THE  PLACE  TO  WHICH  JACOB  “ WENT  UP  ” 

TO  WORSHIP. 

The  fifth  argument  can  be  drawn  from  the  following:  That 
the  Scriptures  declare  the  place  called  Beth-el  to  be  the  chosen 
site  and  identified  with  Mount  Gerizim  is  plain  from  the  ac- 
count of  what  took  place  between  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom 
be  peace)  and  Shekim  the  son  of  Hiemor,  who  was  the  gover- 
nor of  Nablus  in  those  days,  in  regard  to  the  latter’s  marriage 
with  Jacob’s  daughter  Dinah.  When  Jacob’s  sons  killed  the 
inhabitants  of  Nablus,  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
became  afraid  of  the  consequences  of  their  action,  and  the  Cre- 
ator (may  he  be  exalted)  knew  of  his  fear  and  revealed  to  him 
his  will  as  follows : “ Arise,  and  go  up  to  Beth-el,  and  remain 


Mount  Genzim. 


19 


there ; and  erect  an  altar  to  the  Omnipotent,  who  appeared  to 
thee  in  thy  flight  from  before  thy  brother  Esau.”  Our  lord 
Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  was  at  that  time  living  in  the 
land-parcel  which  he  bought  from  the  Amorites,  which  is  Elon 
Moreh,  which  is  close  by  Mount  Gerizim,  as  we  have  ex- 
plained previously.  Now  when  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  said 
to  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  : “ Go  up,”  he  meant  that  he 
who  desires  to  go  up  to  Mount  Gerizim  from  this  land-parcel, 
his  doing  so  is  a continuous  going  up  from  the  beginning  of  his 
march  until  his  arrival.  Furthermore  it  is  explained  that  this 
place,  upon  which  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  was  com- 
manded to  go,  was  the  very  place  where  he  tarried  the  night 
in  his  flight  from  his  brother  Esau.  It  was  there  that  the 
angel  appeared  to  him.  He  called  that  place  Beth-el,  and 
erected  a pillar  upon  it.  In  the  account  (to  which  reference 
has  been  made)  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  is  commanded 
to  erect  another  altar  on  it,  in  order  that  the  timid  may  be  well 
assured  that  such  a place  is  his  refuge,  for  it  is  the  house  of 
God,  the  protector,  (may  he  be  exalted)  who  saves  the  one 
taking  refuge  in  him  and  seeking  him'  by  faith,  in  this  place. 
Our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace)  obeyed,  and  per- 
formed, as  the  Holy  Spirit  told  him,  what  is  dutiful  to  every- 
one intending  to  make  a pilgrimage  to  this  place.  It  was  what 
had  been  performed,  also,  by  his  forefathers.  He  ordered  his 
children  to  put  away  from  among  them  the  foreign  gods,  which 
they  had  stolen  from  the  worship  houses  of  the  people  of 
Nablus.  He  ordered  them  to  purify  themselves,  and  to  change 
their  clothes,  as  is  given  in  Genesis  xxxv.  6.  Thereupon  he  com- 
manded them  to  go  up  to  Luzah,  to  Beth-el,  as  it  is  said  in  the 
same  chapter:  “ So  Jacob  came  to  Luzah,  which  is  in  Canaan 
(the  same  is  Beth-el),  he  and  all  the  people  that  were  with 
him.”  These  passages  indicate  that  the  place  is  one,  and  there  is 


20 


Mount  Gerizim. 


no  other  included.  It  belongs  to  God,  and  it  was  not  substituted. 
It  was  called,  formerly,  Luzah,  but  now  it  is  called  Beth-el. 
How  could  there  be  doubt  of  its  being  the  chosen  place,  when 
its  former  name  “ Lu-zah  ” means  “to  God  ” and  its  follow- 
ing name  “ Beth-el  ” means  “ the  house  of  the  Almighty  ” ? It 
was,  moreover,  called  “ Beth-Elohim,”  meaning  “ the  house 
of  angels”;  also  “ Sheer-hashamaim,”  meaning  “the  gates  oi 
heavens/’  The  name  “ Gerizim  ” appeared  for  the  first  time 
only  during  the  life  of  our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace). 
He  who  knows  Hebrew  and  has  it  at  his  command  can  hardly 
fail  to  see  strong  proofs  and  plain  indications  in  these  names, 
as  they  are  pronounced  in  Hebrew,  and  it  takes  little  consid- 
eration of  these  legal  and  Mosaic  passages  to  come  to  the 
sure  conclusion  that  they  designate  Mount  Gerizim  or  Beth-el, 
meaning  “ the  house  of  God  ” ; that  it  is  the  kiblah  for  the 
worship  of  God  (who  is  exalted)  and  the  proper  site  for  his 
descending  glory ; that  it  is  the  place  designated  by  the 
apostle  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace)  in  Exodus  xv.  4,  while 
he  was  praying  to  God  that  the  people  of  Israel  might  remain 
firm  in  this  mountain,  as  follows : “ Thou  shalt  bring  them  in, 
and  plant  them  in  the  mountain  of  thine  inheritance,  in  the 
place,  O Lord,  which  thou  hast  made  for  thee  to  dwell  in ; in 
the  sanctuary,  O Lord,  which  thy  hands  have  established. 
Thou,  O Lord,  shalt  reign  forever  and  ever.”  From  these 
passages  it  appears  that  the  place  in  question  is  holy,  and  that 
its  holiness  is  subject  to  no  change  with  God  (who  is  exalted). 

GERIZIM  IS  THE  MOUNTAIN  WHERE  JOSHUA  SET  UP 
THE  PILLAR. 

The  sixth  argument  we  can  have  from  what  is  related  in  4he 
book  of  Joshua,  the  one  which  is  in  the  possession  of  the 
Samaritans  and  according  to  the  one  in  the  possession  of  the 


* 


a 


Mount  Gerizim. 


21 


Jews,  that  the  aforesaid  mountain  is  sanctified  to  God.'  The 
Jewish  book  called  Joshua,  in  chap.  xxiv.  25,  says:  “And 

Joshua  made  a covenant  in  that  day.;  he  set  thereon  a statute 
and  an  ordinance  in  Nablus,  and  wrote  all  these  sayings  in 
the  law  of  God,  and  he  took  a large  stone,  and  set  under  the 
Hailah,  the  oak,  that  was  in  the  sanctuary  of  God.”  This 
“ Hailah  ” is  the  one  under  which  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom 
be  peace)  buried  the  spoils  his  children  took  from  Nablus, 
when  he  came  up  to  this  mountain,  as  it  is  seen  in  Genesis 
xxxv.  4:  “And  they  gave  unto  Jacob  all  the  foreign  gods 

which  were  in  their  hand,  and  the  rings  which  were  in  their 
ears ; and  Jacob  hid  them  under  the  oak  which  was  by 
Shechem.”  Thus  it  is  clear  from  this  and  other  passages 
that  the  sanctuary  of  God  was  in  Nablus,  and  that  it  is  the 
place  wherein  existed  “ Hailah,”  whose  fame  is  great  with  the 
Samaritans  until  this  day.  Even  the  Muslims  who  live  near  by^ 
or  in  Nablus  receive  blessings  from  it,  and,  following  the  man- 
ner of  the  children  of  Israel,  call  it  « The  Pillar,”  deriving  this 
name  from  the  pillar  which  our  lord  Joshua  (upon  whom  be 
peace)  set,  and  whereupon  he  wrote  the  covenant  which  he 
made  with  the  children  of  Israel  just  before  his  death,  as  pre- 
viously mentioned. 

THE  TENTH  COMMANDMENT  REQUIRES  WORSHIP 
IN  GERIZIM. 

The  seventh  argument  is  that  in  the  Samaritan  Torah,  in  the 
Decalogue,  in  the  tenth  commandment,  there  is  the  following : 
“ And  it  shall  be  that  when  God1  shall  bring  thee  into  the  land 
of  the  Canaanite,  which  thou  shalt  enter  to  inherit  it ; there 
shalt  thou  set  up  large  stones,  and  thou  shalt  plaster  them 
with  plaster,  and  thou  shalt  write  upon  the  stones  all  the  words 
of  this  law.  And  when  ye  shall  cross  the  Jordan,  ye  shall  set 
up  these  stones,  as  I am  commanding  you,  in  Mount  Gerizim. 


22 


Mount  Gerizim. 


And  ve  shall  build  there  an  altar  for  the  Lord  your  God, 
and  thou  shalt  offer  thereupon  offerings  for  the  Lord  your 
God  ; and  this  mountain  is  beyond  Jordan,  towards  where  the 
sun  sets,  in  the  land  of  the  Canaanite,  who  dwells  in  the 
Arabah  opposite  Gilgal,  beside  Elon  Moreh,  in  front  of 
Nablus.” 

This  commandment  of  the  Decalogue  was  omitted  by  the 
Jews  in  their  copy : if  they  would  investigate,  they  would  find 
their  Decalogue  to  be  formed  of  nine  commandments.  But 
this  commandment  was  repeated  again  before  the  death  of  our 
lord  the  Apostle  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace).  He  made  a 
covenant  with  them  and  reminded  them  of  this  commandment 
still  found  in  Deuteronomy  xvii.  in  the  copies  of  both  Samari- 
tans and  Jews : “ And  Moses  and  the  elders  of  Israel  com- 

manded the  people,  saying,  Keep  all  the  commandments  I 
commanded  you  this  day.  And  when. ye  shall  cross  the  Jordan 
to  the  land  the  Lord  God  shall  grant  thee,  then  set  thee  up 
large  stones,  and  plaster  them  with  plaster,  and  write  upon 
them  all  the  words  of  the  law.  When  thou  shalt  cross  into  the 
land  the  Lord  your  God  shall  give  you,  a land  that  produces 
milk  and  honey,  as  said  the  Lord,  the  God  of  your  fathers 
when  ye  shall  cross  over,  ye  shall  set  up  these  stones,  which  I 
command  you  this  day.” 

Now  in  the  Samaritan  Torah  the  stones  are  ordered  to  be 
set  up  “ in  Mount  Gerizim  ” ; while  the  Jews  have  “ in  Mount 
Ebal.”  It  continues : “ And  thou  shalt  plaster  them  with 
plaster,  and  thou  shalt  erect  an  altar  to  the  Lord  thy  God,  an 
altar  of  stones ; thou  shalt  not  lift  upon  them  any  iron.  Of 
whole  stones  shalt  thou  build  the  altar  of  the  Lord  thy  God, 
and  thou  shalt  offer  upon  it  burnt  offerings  to  the  Lord  thy 
God,  and  thou  shalt  offer  peace  sacrifices.  Thou  shalt  eat 
there  and  rejoice  before  the  Lord  thy  God.”  He  repeated  the 


Mpunt  Gerizim. 


23 


same  thought  again  in  this  chapter,  and  made  it  a duty  to  have 
the  blessing  recited  from  upon  Mount  Gerizim,  because  of  the 
descent  of  the  blessing  in  this  mountain  upon  the  children  of 
Israel.  Therefore  he  said : “ These  should  stand  upon  Mount 
Gerizim  to  bless  the  people.”  They  were  Simon,  Levi,  Juda, 
* Iesheker,  Joseph,  and  Benjamin;  opposite  them,  according  to 

the  command  of  God  (who  is  exalted),  stood  six  others,  upon 
Mount  Ebal,  as  it  is  said : “ And  these  should  stand  upon 

Mount  Ebal  to  curse.”  They  were  Reuben,  Gad,  Esher,  Zeb- 
ulun,  Dan,  and  Naphtali.  Following  these  passages,  this 
change  made  by  the  Jews  becomes  plain  ; they  claim  the  altar 
was  to  be  built  on  Mount  Ebal,  whereas  God  (who  is  exalted) 
made  known  to  us,  through  the  preceding  passages,  the  ex- 
alted difference  of  Mount  Gerizim  from  Mount  Ebal.  He  told 
us  what  to  do : to  rejoice  in  that  place,  where  he  commanded 
an  altar  to  be  erected  thereupon  to  offer  sacrifices  and  to  do 
other  specified  things  ; but  joy  cannot  take  place  in  Mount 
Ebal,  on  account  of  what  he  commanded  to  be  done  upon  it, 
namely,  to  curse  and  threaten,  which,  rather,  causes  repent- 
ance and  weeping.  Sadness  would  take  hold  of  the  feelings, 
and  if  those  curses  and  threatenings  were  heard  one  would 
necessarily  weep  and  repent.  All  this  opposes  Joy.  But  the 
blessings  and  promises  are  heard  together  with  other  con- 
comitant expressions,  namely,  blessing  God’s  name;  then  joy 
would  result.  Gladness  will  possess  the  feelings ; for  blessings 
contain  promises  of  the  abundance  of  wealth,  descent  of  bless- 
ing, assurance  of  victory,  and  fulfillment  of  covenant.  Prayer 
must  be  applied  to  receive  them.  God  (who  is  exalted)  made 
5 us  know,  from  the  Scriptures,  that  to  give  and  receive  blessing 
must  be  accompanied  with  “ His  name”  (who  is  exalted). 
Thus  he  said  to  the  children  of  Aaron,  who  were  ordered  to 
bless  continually  the  people  of  God,  Israel,  as  in  Numbers  vi. 


•24 


Mount  Gerizim. 


22  : “ And  God  spake  to  Aaron  and  his  sons,  saying : Thus 
ye  shall  bless  the  children  of  Israel  ” as  far  as  “And  they  shall 
place  my  name  upon  the  children  of  Israel  and  I shall  bless 
them.”  It  is  proved,  therefore,  that  blessing  must  be  joined 
with  God’s  name;  that  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  established 
a place  wherein  it  is  good  to  hear  it ; that  the  latter  can  be  ob- 
tained upon  Mount  Gerizim.  Thus  it  is  written  in  Deut.  xi. 
29 : “ And  thou  shalt  perform  the  blessings  upon  Mount 

Gerizim  and  the  cursings  upon  Mount  Ebal.”  Hence  to  ask 
for  the  blessings  and  to  obtain  them  must  occur  only  upon 
this  mountain  upon  which  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  made  it 
imperative  to  have  thanksgiving,  sacrificial  offerings,  and  re- 
joicing, associated  with  hearing  the  blessings,  as  they  take 
place  upon  Mount  Gerizim.  The  Jews,  however,  still  ke^p 
with  no  alteration  the  two  previously  recorded  commands  in 
regard  to  Mount  Gerizim,  namely : “ Thou  shalt  give  the 

blessings  upon  Mount  Gerizim  ” and  also^ : “ Those  shall  stand 
on  Mount  Gerizim  to  bless  the  people.”  But  in  connection 
with  the  altar,  sacrificial  offerings,  and  rejoicing,  they  change 
Gerizim  to  Ebal  and,  thereby,  unite  two  impossibilities,  namely, 
of  having  cursing  and  rejoicing  take  place  jointly,  as  we  have 
already  said.  But,  at  any  rate,  the  erection  of  an  altar  as  well 
as  the  offering  of  sacrifices  and  rejoicing  must  take  place  in  a 
sacred  place,  well  fitted  for  that  end;  for  such  must  be  done 
“ before  God.”  It  must  be  attended  to  as  soon  as  possession 
of  the  land  shall  become  a fact.  God  made  it  imperative  that 
it  should  take  place  only  in  the  site  chosen  as  his  kiblah,  as 
several  passages  of  the  Scriptures  testify  to  it.  He  connected 
the  offering  of  sacrifices  with  the  tabernacle : whosoever  of- 
fered sacrifices  outside  of  the  tabernacle  was  caused  to  perish. 
He  (who  is  exalted)  commanded  that  the  tabernacle  should  be 
erected  in  the  appointed  place ; he  made  both  the  tabernacle 


Mount  Gerizim. 


25 


and  the  place  eternally  indissoluble  the  one  from  the  other. 

As  for  the  conditions  of  sacrificial  offerings  before  the 
presence  of  God,  that  is,  in  the  kiblah  of  God,  they  are  found  in 
Leviticus,  in  several  chapters,  among  which  is  the  seventeen^. 
Let  the  reader  look  this  up,  and  its  contents  will  be  found  clear. 
As  to  the  indissoluble  connection  of  the  tabernacle  with  its  ap- 
pointed site,  we  find  several  chapters  that  refer  to  it,  among 
which  is  Deuteronomy  xxi.  In  this  chapter  God  (may  he  be 
exalted)  set  and  designated  the  appointed  place ; what  must 
be  done  upon  it;  the  sacrificial  offerings  and  the  rejoicing. 
From  it,  it  is  clear  that  rejoicing  should  be  done  in  the  taber- 
nacle in  the  appointed  place,  and  that  assures  us  that  the  ap- 
pointed place  is  Mount  Gerizim,  which  is  by  Nablus.  As  to 
whether  it  is  Mount  Gerizim  (according  to  the  Samaritans)  or 
Ebal  (according  to  the  Jews)  in  connection  with  the  erection 
of  an  altar,  the  offerings  and  rejoicing,  taking  place  “before 
God,”  that  question  has  been  answered.  The  law  must  be  read 
after  the  passing  of  the  “ seven  years.”  The  reading  must 
be  done  in  the  hearing  of  all  the  children  of  Israel  (see  Deut. 
iii.  9-12).  Also  the  passover  offering  must  be  done  in  connec- 
tion with  “ the  appointed  place,”  and  not  in  the  temple  house, 
as  the  Jews  claim,  and  in  no  other  place.  The  necessary  pil- 
grimages are  three  every  year.  Such  pilgrimages,  according  to 
God’s  command,  must  be  rendered  in  his  presence,  in  his  ap- 
pointed place.  It  is  found  in  Joshua  that  our  lord  Joshua 
(upon  whom  be  peace)  left  undone  not  even  a word  of  the 
Law,  but  he  executed* it.  The  land  rested  in  his  days.  (See 
Josh.  xi.  15 ; viii.  35.)  At  the  close  of  the  latter  chapter  we 
read:  “He  did  not  neglect  even  one  word  of  what  Moses 
commanded;  he  executed  everything.” 

GERIZIM  IS  THE  MOUNT  OF  BLESSING. 

The  eighth  argument,  which  also  confirms  the  fact  that 


26 


Mount  Gerizim. 


Mount  Gerizim  is  the  appointed  place,  is  that  it  was  the 
mountain  upon  which  the  blessings  were  recited.  Now  I will 
draw  the  contrast  between  the  exalted  estate  of  Mount  Gerizim 
and  that  of  Mount  Ebal,  in  addition  to  what  preceded. 

1.  We  note  the  appointment  of  the  first  six  tribes  to  stand  on 
Mount  Gerizim  for  blessing;  while  the  other  six  tribes,  all 
lower  in  nobility,  were  designated  to  stand  on  Mount  Ebal. 
The  tribes  upon  Ebal  were,  with  the  exception  of  two,  the 
children  of  concubines.  As  to  Reuben  and  Zebulun,  there  is 
discussion  that,  for  time  and  space,  we  shall  let  go  by  in  this  ' 
short  essay. 

2.  The  necessity  of  giving  the  blessings  on  Mount  Gerizim 
and  the  cursings  on  Mount  Ebal. 

3.  When  the  two  mountains  are  named,  Gerizim  is  always 
mentioned  first. 

4.  The  very  appearance  of  the  two  mountains  suggests  a 
contrast,  and  discloses  the  existence  of  traces  of  blessings  on 
Mount  Gerizim.  It  is  a shining  mountain.  It  is  crowned  with 
water  springs  gushing  from  all  its  sides.  It  has  a full  vege- 
tation and  a healthy  climate.  Mount  Ebal  has  nothing  of  the 
kind  as  we  can  see  to-day. 

5.  The  fact  that  it  is  called  “ Beth-el,”  and  that  Elon 
Moreh  is  by  its  side.  The  latter  is  also  called  “ Halkat  us- 
Sahra.”  No  explanation  is  needed  here  for  the  one  who  looks 
upon  and  reads  the  books  of  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace).. 
From  every  standpoint  Mount  Gerizim  towers  over  Ebal,  and 
is  in  every  possible  way  superior  to  it  in  all  points  of  ex- 
cellency. 

6.  There  is  in  the  Samaritan  Torah  the  passage  that  the 
erection  of  the  altar  and  the  offering  of  sacrifices  should  take 
place  on  Gerizim.  This  is  the  true  reading.  Contrary  to  what 
the  Jews  affirm,  corrupting  the  very  Torah  to  prove  their 


Mount  Gerizim. 


27 


position,  changing  the  one  true  place  of  worship,  first  to 
Shiloh  and  afterward  to  Jebesh,  and  causing  their  Law  to 
read  that  the  holy  altar  was  erected  on  Ebal  the  mountain  of 
cursing,  the  Samaritans  preserve  and  obey  the  word  as  it  was 
revealed  through  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace). 

7.  The  Jews  forgot  Nablus  and  its  exalted  state,  in  spite  of 
the  fact  that  in  the  days  of  Samuel  and  Saul,  as  it  is  evident 
from  their  own  books  of  Kings  and  Chronicles,  they  used 
never  to  declare  allegiance  to  a monarch  or  crown  a king  ex- 
cept in  Shechem  or  Nablus;  for  it  was  the  capital  of  the  King- 
dom of  Israel,  and  in  the  lot  of  our  lord  Joseph  (upon  whom 
be  peace),  who  is  the  first  king  that  appeared  out  of  the  de- 
scendants of  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace).1 

THE  TWICE  SEVEN  HOLY  NAMES  OF  MOUNT  GERIZIM. 

The  Samaritan  books  have  for  Mount  Gerizim  twice  seven 
holy  names. 

1.  The  first  name  is  “ the  ancient  mountain/'  The 
Ancient  One  (may  he  be  exalted)  chose  it  from  the  creation, 
from  the  time  lie  made  the  dry  land  to  appear.  It  is  so  desig- 
nated in  Deut.  xxiii.  15,  where  in  the  blessing  of  Joseph  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  it  is  stated  that  his  blessing  shall  be  from  the 
excellencies  of  “ the  ancient  mountain.” 

2.  It  is  called  beth-el,  meaning  “ the  house  of  the  al- 
mighty.” The  Almjighty  (may  he  be  exalted)  caused  it  to 
be  a shield  and  a help  to  the  one  making  pilgrimage  to  it.  He 
made  it  a refuge  and  sanctuary  to  all  those  who  turn  to  God 
(may  he  be  exalted)  and  seek  him  upon  it.  This  name 
was  mentioned  several  times  in  Jacob’s  flight  for  his  fear  of 
those  of  Nablus,  that  is,  those  who  live  in  or  by  it.  God 
(may  he  be  exalted)  told  him,  “Arise,  and  go  up  to  Beth-el.” 

1 See,  e.  g.,  the  account  of  the  coronation  of  Rehoboam,  the  son  of 
Solomon  (1  Kings  xii.  1). 


28 


Mount  Gerizim. 


A full  discussion  of  the  same  has  already  been  made  in  this 
chapter,  and  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  knows  best. 

3.  The  third  name  is  “the  house  of  angels”  (Elohim). 
It  is  the  dwelling  of  the  holy  angels.  They  never  abandon  it ; 
they  continually  remain  in  it,  praising  God  (may  he  be  ex- 
alted) and  praying  to  him  on  it.  Our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom 
be  peace)  uttered  this  name  when  he  said : “ This  is  no  other 
than  the  house  of  God”  (Gen.  xxviii.  17). 

4.  The  fourth  name  is  “ the  gate  of  heaven.”  Everyone 
who  prays  and  seeks  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  in  prayer,  must 
direct  himself  to  it.  To  prove  it,  see  what  our  lord  Jacob  (up- 
on whom  be  peace)  said  in  the  same  chapter,  namely,  “And 
this  is  the  gate  of  heaven.” 

5.  The  fifth  name  is  luzah.  It  is  declared  in  the  same 
chapter  that  the  name  of  the  city  was,  at  first,  Luzah.  That 
was  its  surname  from  the  beginning;  for  in  the  first  ages  they 
used  to  designate  this  mountain,  saying,  “To  him  is  this 
[LozehJ,  that  is,  “to  god  is  this  place.”  This  was  because 
of  what  they  used  to  see  of  its  greatness  and  lights,  and  this 
was  the  reason  why  our  lord  Jacob  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
said  about  this  mountain : “ How  full  of  lights  is  this  place  ” 
(see  preceding  chapter). 

6.  The  sixth  name  is  “ sanctuary.”  It  is  spoken  of  as  the 
dwelling  of  the  Holy  One  (may  he  be  exalted),  and  it  is  the 
place  of  the  sanctuary  and  the  kiblah  of  the  sanctiful  people. 
All  these  words  fit  it  closely.  It  is  the  place  of  God  (may  he 
be  exalted).  Therefore  spoke  the  great  prophet  Moses  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  in  the  holy  Torah,  in  designating  this  mount- 
ain : “ Thou  hast  made  a sanctuary,  O Lord.” 

7.  The  seventh  name  is  “ mount  gerizim.”  It  is  explained 
after  the  Scriptures  as  the  mountain  of  blessing : “ Thou 
shalt  make  the  blessing  upon  Mount  Gerizim.,:>  It  is,  also, 


Mount  Gerizim. 


29 


hinted  at  as  the  dwelling  of  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  where- 
upon the  name  of  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  must  be  uttered. 
Compare  “ In  the  place  where  my  name  is  pronounced,  there  I 
shall  be,  and  I shall  bless  thee.” 

8.  The  eighth  name  is  “ beth-yhwh.”  This  is  the 

very  name  of  the  Highest.  Compare  Exodus  xxiii.  19  : The 

firstlings  of  thy  land  shalt  thou  bring  to  the  house  of  the  Lord 
[Beth-YHWH]  thy  God.”  It  is  the  place  of  offerings  of 
tithes,  firstlings,  sacrifices  and  presents,  and  of  everything  that 
belongs  to  God  (may  he  be  exalted),  according  to  his  com- 
mand. And  as  there  is  no  companion  to  the  Owner  of  the 
name  YHWH,  so  there  is  among  all  the.  mountains  none  like 
this  mountain. 

9.  The  ninth  name  is  “the  beautiful  mountain.  Com- 

pare Deut.  iii.  25,  where  our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be 
peace)-  designated  so  in  his  prayer  that  he  may  enter  the  holy 
land  in  order  to  see  the  beautiful  mountain : “ Let  me  go  be- 
yond to  the  good  land,  which  is  across  the  Jordan,  that  beauti- 
ful mountain  and  Lebanon.”  He  meant  by  “ that  beautiful 
mountain  ” Mount  Gerizim ; he  was  praying  in  its  direction  as 
he  called  it  so.  The  reason  of  thus  surnaming  it  is  found  in 
the  fact  that  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  had  commanded  that 
everything  good  should  be  offered  upon  it,  beginning  from 
Abel  (see  Gen.  iv.  4)  : “And  Abel  offered,  also,  of  the  first- 
lings of  his  sheep  and  of  its  fat  ones.”  This  mountain  offering 
corresponds  with  the  written  traditions  kept  by  this  people. 
God  (may  he  be  exalted)  commanded  it,  namely,  that  every- 
thing good  and  holy  should  be  offered  him  upon  this  mountain. 
We  find  the  following  in  Deuteronomy  xii.  11 : “To  the  place 

which  the  Lord  your  God  shall  choose  from  your  tribes  to 
cause  his  name  to  dwell  there,  ye  shall  bring  thither  what  I am 


30 


Mount  Gerizim. 


commanding’  you  as  far  as  “ and  the  bvst  of  the  vows  ye  vow 
to  God.” 

10.  The  tenth  name  is  the  chosen  place,”  as  in  verse  5 
of  the  same  chapter,  and  in  many  other  passages. 

11.  The  eleventh  name  is  “the  highest  in  the  world.” 
So  called  it  our  two  great  lords,  our  lord  Jacob  and  our  lord 
Moses  (upon  them  be  peace),  in  the  blessing  they  gave  Joseph 
(upon  whom  be  peace).  The  words  of  our  lord  Jacob  (upon 
whom  be  peace)  are  as  lollows  : He  said  in  the  blessing,  “ The 
blessing  of  thy  father  and  of  thy  mother  have  prevailed  upon 
the  blessing  of  the  mountains.”  Again,  “ Even  to  the  bound 
of  the  highest  in  the  world  ” shall  be  to  the  chief  Joseph  (up- 
on whom  be  peace).  Our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peace) 
spoke  in  blessing  Joseph  (upon  whom  be  peace)  as  follows-. 
“ Fr^m  the  best  things  of  the  ancient  mountain  and  the  best 
things  of  the  highest  in  the  world.”  Hie.  mleant  that  this 
mountain  is  the  highest  of  the  earth’s  mountains  in  point  of  ex- 
cellency and  altitude. 

12.  The  twelfth  name  is  “the  first  of  mountains,”  situ- 
ated within  the  boundaries  of  the  best  of  the  tribes.  Compare 
what  God  (may  he  be  exalted)  said  about  it  to  our  lord 
Abraham  (upon  whom  be  peace)  : “Upon  the  best,  or  first,  of 
mountains,  which  I will  tell  you.”  This  was  when  God  (may 
he  be  exalted)  was  trying  his  allegiance  by  commanding  him 
to  offer  his  son  Isaac  (upon  whom  be  peace),  as  in  Genesis 
xxii.  2 : “ Take  thy  son,  thy  only  son,  whom;  thou  lovest, 
Isaac,  and  bring  him  to  the  land  of  Moreh  and  offer  him  as 
an  offering  upon  the  first  of  mountains,  which  I will  tell  you.” 

13.  The  thirteenth  name  is  “ god  is  seen.”  It  was  given  by 
our  lords  Abraham  and  Moses  (upon  them  be  peace).  Com- 
pare Genesis  xxii.  14. 


Mount  Gefizim. 


31 


14.  The  fourteenth  name  is  “ the  mountain  of  the  in- 
heritance of  the  shekinah  ” for  our  lord  Moses ( upon 
whom  be  peace)  said:  “In  the  mountain  of  thy  inheritance, 
the  place  of  thy  dwelling,”  as  we  have  previously  explained  in 
this  chapter. 

Both  the  Samaritan  and  Jewish  copies  agree  that  our  lord 
Joshua  (upon  whom  be  peace),  before  his  death,  gathered  all 
Israel,  and  they  stood  in  the  presence  of  God  in  the.  taber- 
nacle, as  we  read  in  the  Jewish  book  of  Joshua  (chapter 
xxiv.). 

He  made  there  a covenant  with  them  that  should  remain 
faithful  to  the  keeping  of  the  law,  given  through  our  lord 
Moses,  the  son  of  Amram  (upon  whom  be  peace).  Just  after 
that  it  is  said,  “ And  he  made  them  a statute  and  an  ordinance 
in  Shechem,”  the  city  now  known  as  Nablus.  That  was  im- 
mediately before  his  death. 

To  prove  what  we  have  said,  let  it  be  known  that  Nablus 
was  the  capital  of  the  kingdom  of  Israel,  and  one  of  its 
mountains  was  Mount  Gerizim,  whereupon,  during  the  life  of 
our  lord  Joshua  (upon  whom  be  peace),  the  tabernacle  was 
erected.  Another  proof  is  that  all  those  who  served  in  the 
tabernacle,  namely,  Eleazer,  Phinehas,  Ithamar,  Shisha, 
Bahka,  and  Uzza  and  the  seventy  elders,  who  prophesied  from 
the  gift  of  our  lord  Moses  (upon  whom  be  peacd),  all  of  these 
were  ordered  to  be  buried  opposite  the  aforesaid  mountain, 
and  so  it  was  done.  They  were  buried  opposite  the  noble 
mountain  in  Amarta,  after  they  had  spent  their  age  in  serv- 
ing in  the  tabernacle.  Their  graves  are  still  known  to  both 
Samaritans  and  Jews  unto  this  day.  If,  according  to  the 
fancy  of  the  Jews,  the  tabernacle  had  been  in  Jebesh,  'these 
great  priests  would  have  been  buried  there.  One  sees  their 
graves — all  directed  towards  this  mountain. 


3 0112  073 


52867 


32  Mount  Gerizim. 

Thus  do  the  Samaritans  prove  their  sanctuary  the  true 
place  of  prayer,  appealing  not  to  their  own  traditions  only,  but 
to  the  testimony  of  priests  whom  the  Jews  also  honor,  whose 
graves,  now  with  us  and  undisputed,  bear  their  own  eloquent 
testimony  to  the  truth  which  we  profess;  for  those  graves 
point,  as  we  pray,  toward  the  Holy  Mountain,  where  we  still 
worship  the  God  of  our  fathers. 

Let  me  conclude  this  chapter  by  saying : This  is  the  creed 

of  the  Samaritans  and  their  belief  in  this  mountain.  They 
offer  their  sacrifices  upon  it,  and  perform  upon  it  all  that  is 
necessary  for  their  sanctification,  in  accordance  with  Deut. 
xxxiii.  18-19.  They  argue  that  the  prophet-leader,  who  shall 
lead  the  world,  will  surely  appear.  He  will  bring  up  again 
the  Shekinah  upon  the  aforesaid  mountain,  in  the  second  king- 
dom, when  God  shall  look  with  favor  upon  his  people  and  shall 
forgive  them. 

O God;  direct  us  to  thy  pleasure,  and  confirm  us  in 

TEIE  BEST  FAITH  THROUGH  ' THE  INTERMEDIATION  OF  OUR  LORD 
AND  PROPHET  MOSES,  THE  SON  OF  AMRAM  ! 

This  chapter  is  what  a tired  mind  and  a weak  in- 
telligence COULD  ATTAIN  WITHIN  THE  LIMITS  OF  BRIEFNESS. 

And  God  knows  best. 

Jacob,  Son  of  Aaron,  High  Priest  of  the  Samaritans 
at  Shechem. 


